Bo Tate-Cannon




 * "I'm damaged goods. I'm the definition of 'basket case' and it would take a world renowned psychiatrist to fix me. But maybe I'm okay not being fixed. It's been three years. I've grown to accept my life now. We aren't normal and I'm okay with that. I'm okay being broken." 


 * -- Bo accepting her lack of normality in life.

Bethany "Bo" Tate-Cannon - simply Bethany Cannon for school records - (b. September 13th 1995) is a free-spirited, fun-loving teen with a habit for being a little reckless. Given the nickname Bo by her late father, Alec Cannon, she spends most of her time surfing and hanging out with best friends Maya Michaels and Kylie Marshall.



As a result of the DNA-altering experiments performed on her as an infant, Bo has manifested the superhuman ability to adapt, mimic, and absorb the powers of others.

Bo is portrayed by Miley Cyrus.

Background
Bo was born in Manhattan, NY to Alec Cannon  and Gwyneth Tate on September 13 1995. She is seventeen at the start of The Genesis Project books and living in Highland Beach, FL. In August of 2008, Bo and her parents relocated from New York to Florida for her father's position at the Geneticis government lab agency, which is where she met the Marshalls and Michaels families.

In December of 2010, Bo and her parents were involved in a serious car accident where her father lost control of the car due to engine failure and they were thrown off a bridge. Bo managed to survive the crash but neither of her parents did, leaving her in the care of her aunt, Dani Campbell.


 * "She stuck around long enough to help me eat all of the casseroles that my neighbors brought over, but after about two months I came home from school to find a note on the fridge and all traces of Aunt Dani gone." 


 * -- Bo Tate-Cannon on Dani Campbell's absence.

Bo never moved out of her parents' home and instead modified it so that it suited her - including revamping the surf shack out back to house more boards. She drives a beat-up black Jeep Wrangler because it's the "only car big enough to fit my boards in without compromising parking capability" and is frequently seen driving without the top on it.

Physical Appearance:
Bo is described as being no taller than five-foot-four and with the build of an athlete. It is said that the long hours that she clocks in on the waves contribute to her fit physique and she's even teased to be more in shape than most of the Coastal Academy football team. She has dark brown hair with a hint of red in it that naturally falls into long bouncy curls and is frequently seen with it in a messy bun or in loose waves from the beach. Her eyes are described to be "the clearest color of blue you could find in a Crayola crayon box" and it's rare that she ever wears more than a few coats of mascara for makeup.

Due to her long hours spent outdoors, Bo's skin has a natural sun-kiss to it and her face has faint freckles which she's said to have gotten from her mother. She's made up of almost entirely muscle and is very adament about staying in shape to surf.

Personality Traits:

 * "After my parents died, I grew into this really reckless phase. I guess you could say I haven't actually outgrown it, but I'm getting there." 


 * -- Bo talking with Diana Franklin to become emancipated.

Bo is very light-hearted and always knows how to make the people around her laugh, but in the same aspect knows just when and where to be serious. She says that being funny and goofing off is sometimes the only way she manages to get through the hard things and that she swore she laughed off her parents' deaths years ago because if she didn't, it would've destroyed her.

Bo's personality changes from her relationship with Mason Marshall to her relationship with Levi Marshall in that she's much more accepting of her life. With Mason, she tried to push everything aside and pretend it wasn't there. She was much more immature and didn't think quite as much before she would do things - ie. cliff-diving incident. But with Levi, her maturity seemed to have blossomed and she owned up to her mistakes as well as made the others around her own up to theirs.

Bo is seen as undescribably caring, a true friend, and loyal no matter how hard it is to be so. However, she is frustratingly cautious with her trust, an anxious talker, and (according to Levi Marshall) a basket case. But she accepts her flaws eventually and learns to cope with her anxieties. All in all, Bo is a fun-loving risk taker who will always be there for her friends at the end of the day.

Superhuman Abilities and Skills:

 * Bo - "I'm not doing anything wrong. I'm not taking anything from these people."


 * Mason - "These people? Bo, they're just like us! They're confused and scared and the last thing they need is some random girl who's father worked for the Agency showing up on their doorstep to 'borrow' their ability for the afternoon." 


 * -- Bo and Mason Marshall arguing about her gift.

Bo possesses the ability of power adaptation, absorption, and manipulation, meaning she is able to copy the abilities of others, adapt them for a longer time period, and manipulate them so that the other person may or may not be able to use them.

With the more powers that Bo collects, the harder she finds it is to remain in control. With the help of Kyle Jacobs, Bo learns how to better control her abilties and how to summon the correct one depending on what she needs it for. She refers to her ability as "borrowing" the gifts of others.

Relationships:

 * Throughout the books, Bo is featured in a series of relationships between the other main characters. She tends to be everybody's friend, however a few relationships stand out among the rest.

Dani Campbell:
The first real relationship of Bo's described, Dani is Bo's aunt and Alec Cannon's younger sister. She claimed that she was too young to take care of a teenager on her own and in a state of panic, left Bo to raise herself for three years. Before her parents' deaths, Bo and Dani shared a normal, aunt-niece relationship where Dani would go out and sneak Bo in bottles of liquor behind her parents back. Dani was always described as "the cool aunt" and because of that, Bo believed she didn't quite know how to handle being "the serious guardian" instead. When Dani finally does return home years later, she tries to have a presence in Bo's life only to be shut down and denied. This then prompts her to try and take legal action which then backfires as Bo files for emancipation under Diana Franklin's law firm.

After the papers are signed and the courts rule in favor of Bo, Dani tries one last time to get her family back. She goes over to Bo's house with a peace offering in the shape of a pie and through the window sees her niece practicing her new techniques courtesy of Kyle Jacobs. Dani was never officially a part of the Geneticis team but learned through the years what it was that her brother did and goes to Martin Marshall to tell him about Bo. Hoping this will get her neice help and bring them closer together, Dani doesn't realize when she makes the mistake and exposes Bo and the others to The Agency.

Mason Marshall:
Mason is said to be Bo's first boyfriend and their relationship lasts two years before Bo finally calls it quits. They are described as the perfect couple and the perfection cloud lingering over her head is part of the reason why Bo breaks it off. Mason and Bo get together a year after her parents' deaths, when she's beginning to get her life back to nromal again. She says she always knew how opposite the two were, but that she was so infatuated in the beginning that she didn't care.

Mason and Bo date for two years before Bo begins her emancipation petition - at the start of their junior year. She says that Mason has always been an easy Mr. Popular and that it was the role he was born to play, however she was not meant to be his Mrs in that aspect. Due to the stress of the trial, the upcoming Homecoming dance, the manifestation of their supernatural new powers, as well as the mysterious return of Mason's brother, Levi Marshall, Bo and Mason break up.

After the breakup, it's clear that the two still have feelings for each other, but that they are trying to move past them. Mason moves on with Maya Michaels briefly except he causes a rift in the girl's friendship and decides that "no meaningless hookup is worth making her hate me forever." However, when Bo moves on with Levi, she feels extremely guilty for doing so with her ex-boyfriend's brother and tries her best to make a friendship between them.

Kylie Marshall:
Kylie is Bo's best friend (along with Maya Michaels) and has been since Bo moved to Florida in the sixth grade. Bo credits her relationship with Mason to the fact that she and Kylie were such great friends and whenever the couple has a fight, Kylie is always seen "taking Bo's side in the divorce." Kylie and Bo are fond of surfing together - even though Kylie does it more recreationally and not as sport like Bo - as well as shopping with Maya.

The two have had their share of fights and many of which have started due to the manifestation of their new powers. While Bo was a firm believer in "everything for a reason" and that they should learn to control their powers so that they could use them wisely, Kylie voted in favor of forgetting about the entire thing.


 * Bo - "This isn't a B- on a test, Ky! These are comic-book originating super powers! We can't just ignore them like a bad perm and hope they go away. We need to learn how to use them so that we don't hurt someone." 


 * Kylie - "That's just it! I did hurt someone! I hurt you! If I would've never had this dumb abilty then I could've never given it to you and you would've never burnt down your shack! You wouldn't have to worry about having scars on your forearms for the rest of your life or replacing your favorite boards. So if I want to forget about all of this, I will."


 * -- Bo and Kylie Marshall arguing over what to do about their newfound abilities.

In the end, the two girls always make up and enjoy marathons of Gossip Girl, Lost, and Grey's Anatomy.

Maya Michaels:

 * "What is this? The Dead Parents Club 2.0?" 


 * -- Maya Michaels on her friendship with Bo.

Bo met Maya when she moved to Florida in the sixth grade - when she also met Kylie and Mason - and the two became fast friends. With their dry senses of humor, love of fashion, and raw close family ties, it was no wonder the girls were nearly inseparble months later. Bo's friendship with Maya differs from hers with Kylie in that it's based less on deep conversations and more on sheer fun. Bo recalls that the majority of her favorite nights or "crazy-ass nights" have been spent with Maya and the two are frequently seen getting into trouble together.

After Bo's breakup with Mason, Maya and Mason begin to harmlessly flirt with one another and it causes tension between Maya and Bo. Mason breaks off the fling before the girls permanently lose their friendship and Maya develops a relationship with George Seven, whom Bo says to suit her better anyway.

Levi Marshall:

 * Levi - "That's a great speech. And it'd be even greater if there wasn't a girl waiting for me in my room right now." 


 * Bo - "You're a jerk. How hard is it for you to let us have a nice moment like this?" 

Levi and Bo have known each other since Bo was a "freckly sixth grader easily mistaken as a six-year-old" and to her, he was always "Kylie and Mason's older brother." He left Florida for Manhattan after the spontaneous deaths of Elouise Michaels, Alec Cannon, and Gwyneth Tate and didn't have much of a relationship of any sorts with Bo since he was twenty-two and she was fourteen. He always thought of her as a little sister - moreso when she and Mason began dating - and was too wrapped up in all of the drama surrounding Geneticis to make anything more out of their relationship.

However, when Bo calls it quits with Mason, she and Levi grow closer - at first because of his knowledge of the Agency and abilities. It's not long before the attraction is heavily noted and the two embark on a full-fledged romance. Before romance, however, the two become great friends and spend a lot of time researching The Agency  and the truth behind the accident that killed her parents. Together, they learn that Alec Cannon did not know about the side effects of the Geneticis testing or The Genesis Project when it first happened. They also learn that before his death, Alec had learned about Levi and his ability and that the same thing would eventually happen to Bo. They discover that Alec was killed because he was going to try and put an end to The Agency and The Genesis Project to protect Bo. This revelation also opens up the other "accidents" that caused deaths among other Geneticis employees - namely Elouise Michaels. Since Elouise never worked for Geneticis it seemed odd that she died just months before Alec Cannon and after further digging, Levi and Bo discover the truth in the offing of some Geneticis team members.


 * "You and your mom were never supposed to be in that car. It was only supposed to be Alec driving home from the office but you two showed up and he drove the both of you back to the house. The engine was messed with so that it would give out at the right moment and cause him to lose control of the car. He was supposed to be the only one hurt. Not you. And certainly not your mom." 


 * "Maya's mom was pushed off the boat as a warning. Geneticis didn't want to lose someone valuable to the company like Alec if they didn't have to. But he was digging and pushing his limits. So, to send a message to him and all of the other parents in The Agency who were looking to maybe back out, they killed Elle. What's more threatening than The Agency in your face saying,' look what we can do! We can kill those you're closest to and make it look like an accident! It was the perfect way to make sure no one else got out of line."


 * -- Levi Marshall explaining to Bo the truth behind the deaths of Alec Cannon, Gwyneth Tate, and Elouise Michaels.

As they begin to dig deeper and deeper into the secrets of Geneticis - and therefore spend much more time together - Bo begins to see more to Levi than she initially thought. Signs she can't ignore begin making their way into their daily conversations and actions and before she knows it, she falls for him. She begins to note the little things that Levi does - things Mason never did - like opening every door for her and pushing in her chairs. They spend many nights just talking which is something Bo doesn't recall coming easy with her and Mason. She tells him about the emancipation trial - something she kept secret from Mason - and about her parents' deaths. She tells Levi about her ability before she tells Mason and he is able to help her in ways that she doesn't think Mason ever could. Levi doesn't pressure her into talking about her feelings or constantly ask her "what's up?" if she seems off like Mason did and because of that, Bo finds herself naturally opening up to him more.

Levi and Bo's relationship goes through a bit of a rough patch when she meets Margaret Perkins - another person who developed abilities after being tested on by The Agency/Geneticis. Margaret is a twenty-something badass with a need for speed and a thing for Levi. The two were involved in a fling years ago and when she turns up later to work with them, Bo feels threatened because she knows that Margaret and Levi are better suited for each other. They are closer in age and share the same hatred towards their fathers - something, even after learning what he was a part of, Bo could never do. Bo and Levi get into a heated argument and Levi says something that Bo knows everyone's been thinking, but no one's had the guts to say. He tells her that she will forever be broken and calls her a "basket case" because nothing will ever be able to bring back that light she had in her eyes before her parents were killed. This causes the two to break up and Bo says "it was ten times harder to walk away from him than it ever was with Mason."

Eventually, Margaret returns back to The Agency and tells them that she could not get Levi's assistance, which will then send more agents on their tail. However, in a surprise move, she tells them that he and the others are headed out of the country to seek refuge and it keeps the agents off their backs for a little longer while they try to figure out what to do next. In betraying The Agency, Margaret has sacrificed her freedom and must become a fugitive on the run and just before she disappears into the wind she leaves a note behind for Bo which reads, "Hold on to him. You guys are the real deal."

After everything seems to settle and Bo begins to believe she can lead a normal life again, she decides to trust Margaret's instincts - even if she never particularly liked Margaret - and goes to talk to Levi. At his apartment, he invites her inside in the rain and the two make up only to have sex for the first time - an experience, Bo claims, was "extraordinary, because no matter how rough it got we'd heal."

The book ends with Bo and Levi living happily together, doing daring things like skydiving and scaling skyscrapers in Manhattan. Bo even says that maybe one day she'd be able to move to New York with him.


 * "Only if I get to have my own private beach to surf in the backyard, though." 


 * -- Bo's ultimatum to Levi Marshall on moving to Manhattan.

Micah Peters
Bo's first interaction with Micah occurs in the parking lot of Coastal Academy when he's walking to his car parked behind hers. He makes a comment about her being the cliched spoiled rich girl only to drive away a moment later. When Bo's surf shack catches fire - inadvertantly by her new ability picked up from Kylie Marshall - and her friends come to visit her, they mention that it's believed to be a case of arsony and the first name Bo suggests is Micah's. After some investigation, they discover that isn't the case and the two begin on a rocky friendship.

Micah constantly teases Bo about being the typical rich girl living on a private section of Highland Beach until he learns that the house actually belongs to her dead parents. He then apologizes and considers them 'even' for making irrational first judgements about the other, something that causes Bo to smile. Micah and Bo become good friends throughout the books, which helps Micah to build a relationship with Kylie - whom he really likes.

Kyle Jacobs
Kyle is another gifted human who'd been tested on by Geneticis as an infant and resulted in him developing the same power adaptation, absorption, and manipulation ability as Bo. He is on the run from The Agency, which tried to take him in a year ago, and bumps into Bo when he's invisible and snooping through the Geneticis Lab building. After talking and getting to know each other briefly, Kyle decides to help Bo out in controlling her newfound ability and by helping her to "call" upon which gift she wishes to use.

The Agency finds him after about two weeks of working with Bo and interrogates him for a straight three days. Keeping tight-lipped about what he knows about Bo and the others and what he did to help her gain control frustrates Martin Marshall and when he doesn't get any answers out of him, he has him killed. Bo mourns the loss of her friend privately so that she doesn't raise any suspicions within The Agency or Geneticis.

George Seven
Bo and George's relationship is only defined in that he's secretly admired her and the other Populars from afar for years and only after all of their powers began manifesting did he get a shot of getting "in". She says he's a nice guy and admires his intellect because it gets them out of many situations, however there is no real personal connection between the two.

Bo does go on a double-date with George, though. She and Levi Marshall tag along with him and Maya Michaels to an old diner outside of Orlando where they go strictly to find information on The Genesis Project and end up finding out nothing.

Alec Cannon and Gwyneth Tate
Alec and Gwyneth were Bo's parents and though not much is known about her relationship with them, it seems that she had a normal teenaged relationship with her parents. She frequently finds herself reminded of her mother in little things like the smell of Diana Franklin's office and a song on the radio while she's in the car with Levi Marshall, however her more complex relationship was with her father.

Bo learns with Levi Marshall that her father was killed to keep quiet about what was really going on in the Geneticis company and that she and her mother were never meant to be in the car with him. She has mixed feelings about her father after learning this, since she now knows that he knew what was going on and waited fourteen years to stop it. All in all, Bo remembers having a great relationship with her parents when they were alive and loved both of them dearly.

Diana Franklin
Diana is the attorney that has taken over Bo's emancipation trial at the start of the book. Bo ends up talking with her a lot more than she initially planned and says that Diana, in some ways, reminded her of her mother. She says that even though she's too young now, when Diana is a mother she will be a good one and thanks her at the end of her trial when they win.